Mar 9 • 10:02 UTC 🇪🇪 Estonia Postimees

General illness in Estonia is declining, but one virus is attacking more vigorously

While respiratory virus prevalence in Estonia remains moderate, cases of the RS virus have notably increased amid a decline in influenza and COVID-19 cases.

According to the Health Board of Estonia, the overall prevalence of respiratory viruses in the country is at a moderate level, with both influenza and COVID-19 cases declining. However, the incidence of other respiratory viruses, particularly the RS virus, has risen significantly. In the ninth week of the year, a total of 3,492 people consulted doctors regarding upper respiratory tract infections, marking a 13% decrease from the previous week, with about one-third of those infected being children aged 14 and under.

Despite the decrease in total illness, several outbreaks are still being reported, which likely contribute to maintaining the overall number of cases. The ongoing strains continue to be mainly RS, influenza, and COVID-19, with moderate assessments regarding flu cases. In the ninth week alone, 601 cases of influenza were recorded, 17% fewer than the previous week. The flu continues to spread widely across all counties and age groups, and since the beginning of the season, there have been 1,613 hospitalizations attributed to influenza, with 114 patients reported dead, 108 of whom were aged 60 and older.

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